National Science Teaching Association: Why Is Plastic Used to Build Race Cars?

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National Science Teaching Association: Why Is Plastic Used to Build Race Cars?

What happens when two different materials are used together to create NASCAR car parts?

That’s just what second-grade students want to figure out! Students investigate what the effect of adding carbon fiber (fabric) to plastic (glue) has on the observable properties of the resulting object.

Materials

Carbon Fiber Investigation Materials (each station)

  • Prepared fabric on aluminum foil

Teacher setup will require these items:

  • 4 pieces of wax paper or aluminum foil per station;
  • 7 small pieces of fabric (cotton T-shirt works fine);
  • Scissors;
  • Small container for mixing glue and water;
  • White School Glue;
  • Water;
  • Paintbrush; and
  • Marker or pen-style permanent marker.

Materials for Posters or Writing on the Board

  • Poster Paper and Markers OR
  • Whiteboard and Dry Erase Markers
NASCAR, National Science Teaching Association
Science Topics
Chemistry, Sports
Engineering Topics
Materials
K-6, Educator
Kindergarten, 1st Grade, 2nd Grade
Download PDFs
PDF File
Descriptions of PDFs

Download PDF

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National Science Teaching Association: Racing Themed Resources
National Science Teaching Association

Experience the importance of STEM through the sport of racing!

https://www.nsta.org/nascar-kids

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National Science Teaching Association

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K-12 Categories

Advanced Search

Submit a Resource

National Science Teaching Association: Why Is Plastic Used to Build Race Cars?

What happens when two different materials are used together to create NASCAR car parts?

That’s just what second-grade students want to figure out! Students investigate what the effect of adding carbon fiber (fabric) to plastic (glue) has on the observable properties of the resulting object.

Materials

Carbon Fiber Investigation Materials (each station)

  • Prepared fabric on aluminum foil

Teacher setup will require these items:

  • 4 pieces of wax paper or aluminum foil per station;
  • 7 small pieces of fabric (cotton T-shirt works fine);
  • Scissors;
  • Small container for mixing glue and water;
  • White School Glue;
  • Water;
  • Paintbrush; and
  • Marker or pen-style permanent marker.

Materials for Posters or Writing on the Board

  • Poster Paper and Markers OR
  • Whiteboard and Dry Erase Markers
NASCAR, National Science Teaching Association
Science Topics
Chemistry, Sports
Engineering Topics
Materials
K-6, Educator
Kindergarten, 1st Grade, 2nd Grade
Download PDFs
PDF File
Descriptions of PDFs

Download PDF

What are you looking for?

Organization

National Science Teaching Association

Website URL

Type of Resource

Lesson Plan
PDF File

Assigned Categories